THE NEWS ROOM

Posted On: 7th September, 2017

By: John Binder, breitbart.com

KVUE Screengrab

An Austin, Texas, police officer resigned after he allegedly faked his own death and fled to Mexico.

Coleman Martin, 29-years-old, was reported missing back on April 25, according to KVUE, when he allegedly sent his wife a text message saying he was going to commit suicide near the U.S.-Mexico Border. The following day, investigators found Martin’s truck and a presumed suicide note written to his wife.

Nearby Martin’s vehicle, police discovered a raft that the officer had bought with his wife’s initials on the craft, along with scrape marks from a cinder block that he also bought before traveling to southern Texas.

After failing to find Martin’s body in the lake, investigators discovered a woman whom Martin had been in contact with. On April 27, investigators interviewed the woman, where she explained that the suicide was a ploy and showed investigators an email in which Martin reportedly claimed the charade was successful.

On May 4, Martin was taken into police custody after arresting him on a flight to Colombia and booked him into the Travis County jail, where he was charged with a misdemeanor charge of false reporting.

More than four months later, Martin resigned from the Austin Police Department. The misdemeanor charge remains pending against the former officer.

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